September 2007 Moms: Experiencing the fun of sleep deprivation

[Jess71903]

With all of the AF talk, I wondered....have any of you had signs of O prior to starting AF? I have had some serious EWCM today and yesterday-wondering why I couldn't have it like that when I was TTC! I am thinking if it's for real, I should get AF in a couple of weeks. Does STTN affect when AF returns if you are BFing? Gage has been sleeping 7-8 hours at night lately.

[DisneyGirl]

x-mas I will be getting K the leap frog learning table, jumparoo and clothes from the baby gap and gymboree.

Jess Glad to hear things are going really well and I hope you guys go home this weekend.

Suzly How are things going with you? I have not checked in with you in a while..are you feeling any better? Hows Andrew been sleeping?


K is still eating every 3 hr and at night he will sleep sometimes 4.5 hrs. I am in some serious need of a good nights sleep!

Glad to see everyone is doing well

[Bucktown]

Hi everyone! We had some pictures taken yesterday and I'm so excited with how they turned out. Here is the link: http://www.maggiekphoto.com/anna-nico.html There are pictures of my son too.

I'll be back later to catch up with everyone.

[hmbay]

Disney--I feel for you. My 2nd never slept longer than a 4 hour stretch for months at first. It sucked.

Bucktown--I LOVE your pictures. Your kids are adorable and your photographer did a great job.

[Jess71903]

We're finally home!!! Getting out of there yesterday was long and stressful, but I won't bore you with the details. All that matters is that my family is back where we should be. Gage is doing great and is smiliing at the butterfly on his swing right now. He is such a trooper!

Buck- your kids are beautiful! What great pics!

[sabrespa]

Jess~ I'm glad that you guys are home and doing well

Buck~ Those pictures are fabulous!

QOTD: Sleep, how's it going so far? Zach has started falling asleep earlier, around 9pm. But then he's up at 1, 4, and 7. I'm exhausted. I'd rather he stay up until midnight and sleep until 5, like he was doing. By this time by first son was sleeping 10-6 and my daughter was sleeping 7-7 by 12 weeks. Obviously Zach isn't going to follow in their footsteps. Darnit! I'm so tired.

[Amuse Bouche]

Madeleine is sleeping pretty well at night. Falls asleep around 9 -- wakes up between 1-3 and again around 5 or 6, then up for the day at 8. Since we cosleep, she can just eat in bed and almost always falls right back to sleep. Her daytime sleep is still all over the place, though, and if she hasn't napped well she's seriously crabby in the evening.

[hmbay]

QOTD--well once I get her down for the night she's good. She slept 6.5 hours straight last night until I woke her up to feed her befor work. However she went from taking about an hour to get her down at night to it taking 3 and her not going to bed until somewhere between 1 and 2 am which is NOT going to work well once I go back to work FT next week. I'm pt this week so although I'm exhausted it's tolerable--it won't be next week. I hope I can get her back on track over the holiday weekend but I'm doubtful. :(

[Kiley]

Sleeping - L goes to bed at 7pm, up at 11pm to eat and then another 1-3 times after that. He's up for the day about 12 hours after he goes to bed, so usually 7am. His naps are all over the place, he's a really light sleeper so everything wakes him up.

[jodylovesscotty]

sleeping~ Zoë is sleeping through the night. She goes down between 9 and 10 at night and doesn't get up until anywhere from 5 - 7 in the morning. It is heaven:)

[DisneyGirl]

sleeping~ Zoë is sleeping through the night. She goes down between 9 and 10 at night and doesn't get up until anywhere from 5 - 7 in the morning. It is heaven:)

YOU SUCK!!!! :p

LOL,LOL :D

[Bucktown]

Thanks for the photo compliments everyone!

sleep~ We have also started having more nights of DD going down between 8:30-9pm and not waking till 6-7:30. It is heaven but I'm co-sleeping and she's a really noisy and active sleeper so I'm usually woken up by her several times a night even when she's out. She won't sleep by herself either.

She had her 2 month appointment this morning with all 4 shots & an oral dose of rotavirus vaccine. She was very crabby all day despite the tylenol. She is a big girl coming in at 12 lbs 13 ozs and 23 3/4 inches. We are still having severe reflux issues so now we about to start adding rice cereal to her bottles (per doc instructions) to make the formula heavier. She is unable to drink any powdered based formula so we've been using pre-made Alimentum. Talk about a $$$ hog. The BF thing just didn't work out the way I had hoped. Oh well.

What's everyone doing for T-day? I have 15 people coming for dinner so this will be a challenge!

[jodylovesscotty]

Bucktown~ I probably sound like a broken record, but have you tried formulas with rice starch in them? With the reflux that Zoe has, it has been wonderful ( i was afraod to use rice cereal in the formula). We even use one that is lactose free so her belly is not gassy and constipated any more. Glad to see your liittle one is sleeping good too!

DisneyGirl~ LOL, she just takes after her mom, loves to slepp. Actually I think it is a mix of her being formula feed and the humidifier. That constant noise keeps her asleep!

Zoe is 2 months today. We go on Monday for her check-up and shots. Should I give her tylenol before we go?

[Bucktown]

Jody~ No, not at all like a broken record! What did you say Zoe was on? I'll give it a try.

eta~ I would give the tylenol before the shots. I didn't with DD this time but I will for future shots. I did with DS, don't know why I didn't this time. I did give it immediately after the shots though.

[Taurus]

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

I have a question for Emschwar and any others with experience:

Yesterday at N's checkup we tested his stool as I was reporting that he gets pretty agitated often. We can often hear and feel gurgling and "popping" sensations in his stomach, and we can often see/hear him trying to swallow down something. His gassiness and the above symptoms wake him in the early morning, so his (and my) sleep is poor after about 3 am. (Before 3 am we get about two good 3-hour stretches). During the day, he can be hard to settle for naps. He does not arch his back, spit up often, refuse to eat (though he often is squirmy at the breast), have endless bouts of screaming, or have trouble sleeping on his back.

The doc found faint traces of blood in his stool, which she said could be a milk protein sensitivity. I can do a full elmination diet for 10 days to see if it helps, but she said it's my call and I can weigh it with out bad the fussiness really is. I seriously think the diet would make me miserable. I've already have tough moments adjusting to 2 under 2. Is it bad that I am planning to let things run their course? From what I understood from the doc, he'll likely outgrow it and it isn't correlated to not being able to eat dairy in the future. Is this correct? TIA!

ETA: He is gaining and growing well.

[Jess71903]

This is a "what's normal" question for you moms of boys. Since Gage has spina bifida and we don't know how involved his urinary system is, I am not sure what it normal boy stuff and what is because of his disability. When you change diapers, do your DSs ever just dribble? Gage does sometimes...I *think* he has a steady stream sometimes without him crying, but I can't remember for sure. We go back to the urologist sometime soon and if he still isn't emptying his bladder all the way, we may have to catherize him...SO not looking forward to that. In fact, I think I could deal with more muscular involvement/ physical limitations better than having to cath him, since it's such a socially limiting factor.

[Peever]

Delurking...my DD was born at the end of September so I'm following along...

Taurus- That's word for word exactly like my DD. I can always hear and feel her stomach rumbling and she's overly gassy. She does have some silent reflux and spits up and swallows it, but that's getting better as she gets older. She's the most fussy after she sleeps for long stretches so our sleep is crappy after 3am too and she's often up every hour squirming and fussy and tooting. She can be very hard to settle for naps.

DS had horrible reflux and protein sensitivites and screamed for hours so she's doing better than he is, but I still eliminated dairy from my diet and it did make a huge improvement and I think it's worth it. I'm going to try dairy once a month after this to see if things get better. I miss dairy, but honestly it's not that bad. I'd have a really hard time cutting out soy or wheat, but dairy is doable. I can tell you what I eat on a regular basis if that helps. DS had an awful time with it, but he totally outgrew everything by the time he was 2. I think DD will be better sooner because she's not nearly as bad as he was.

Eliminating dairy has actually made it much easier for me to deal with 2 children. Yesterday DD was a dream. Just ate and slept and was content all day. I decided to try some bread at Thanksgiving yesterday because sometimes babies can digest milk proteins if they're baked, but DD has been fussy today and I have spent the entire day trying to get her to sleep and keep her to sleep. DS begged me to play with him and I felt so bad. He even peed his pants because I didn't have time to make him go potty. I'm able to spend a lot more time with him when I'm eating what I'm "supposed" to because I can get her to sleep much faster and she takes much better naps.

[sabrespa]

Jess, my son dribbles a little bit. Not a lot, and not everytime but usually at least one diaper change a day he will dribble and it will run down onto the changing pad. Sometimes I don't even notice it until I pick him up and the changing pad is wet.

[ptcrn]

Jess, my son dribbles a little bit. Not a lot, and not everytime but usually at least one diaper change a day he will dribble and it will run down onto the changing pad. Sometimes I don't even notice it until I pick him up and the changing pad is wet.

Jess, my DS does this same thing. I think it's normal!

[Taurus]

thanks peever and congrats on your sept baby! i appreciate your info. yesterday i was sure i would not do anything, especially when DS2 ate and napped peacefully all day long. but what i thought was baby acne on his face is bad today and he is clawing at it and i feel so bad! i am figuring that's related. DH said he'd eliminate with me so i'll prob give it a try. you make a good point about it making things easier if it helps him sleep longer stretches and nap. he naps great in the AM, but only if we go out. i'd love to see your "menu" if you can PM me or if you've posted it elsewhere. Thanks!

[Amuse Bouche]

Had our 2 month WBV -- Madeleine's up to 9 lbs, 12 oz. (4 oz. a week), 22.25 in., and 39.5 cm head circumference. We got two shots and an oral vaccine, and the poor kidlet has been pretty worn out.

[jodylovesscotty]

Bucktown~ The formula we use is Similac Sensitive RS. It comes already made in a quart bottle. I usually don't swear by much, but I do by this. It has made all the difference in the world for us.

[Bucktown]

Jody~ Ok, I bought a bottle of pre-made but it's called Similac Sensitive. It has no RS after the name? It's an orange container & says for fussiness & gas, milk based & lactose-free. Is this the same???? It's the only Sensitive name I saw at 2 stores?

eta: Crap, I think I bought the wrong one. The back of the bottle says to try Similac Sensitive R.S. Where the heck do I find this?

[DisneyGirl]

Jody~ Ok, I bought a bottle of pre-made but it's called Similac Sensitive. It has no RS after the name? It's an orange container & says for fussiness & gas, milk based & lactose-free. Is this the same???? It's the only Sensitive name I saw at 2 stores?


eta: Crap, I think I bought the wrong one. The back of the bottle says to try Similac Sensitive R.S. Where the heck do I find this?


You can buy that at any food store, walmart, target and Babies r us ect..


HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

[TracyDP]

Jody~ Ok, I bought a bottle of pre-made but it's called Similac Sensitive. It has no RS after the name? It's an orange container & says for fussiness & gas, milk based & lactose-free. Is this the same???? It's the only Sensitive name I saw at 2 stores?

eta: Crap, I think I bought the wrong one. The back of the bottle says to try Similac Sensitive R.S. Where the heck do I find this?

We use the orange can (Similac Sensative) and it works great for us. We were using Efamil Lipil in the gold/yellow can and it gave Ellie horrible reflux. Since the change it's been completely gone accept for some gas, but no where near as much as it was. You might want to give the orange bottle a try.

[jodylovesscotty]

Bucktown~ I buy it at Walmart because it is rhe cheapest place I found. The RS stands for rice starch which thickens it, and you can still use a normal nipple (unlike rice cereal).

[Bucktown]

I found a bottle at Walgreens last night and we gave it a try. Not sure if it's going to work for us though. She was already squirming all over while eating and takes forever to finish the bottle. We'll finish the bottle & decide then.

Before that we tried the rice cereal in the powdered Alimentum and despite getting a cross-cut nipple (it was too fast of flow) and using a faster flow regular nipple (too slow) we gave up. It did cause a major blow out though. She's definitely cleaned out!

If we go back to the pre-made Alminentum, we'll try the sensitive RS again in another month. Hopefully she'll just outgrow these issues earlier rather than later & make us broke. DH doesn't want another baby & I'm guessing it's due to the cost factor right now. It can't be due to time investment cause he hasn't done crap with her.

[Emilie]

After co-sleeping with Ellie for 10 weeks straight, she is now transitioned to sleeping next to our bed in her bassinet - the crib will be next but we are taking it slow because Mommy doesn't want her to be that far away. :o

Anyway, this morning she woke up at about 5 am for a diaper change and nurse (she went down at 9 pm the night before!!!! YAY!). Anyway, she woke up and her little hands were ICE cold. Her body and feet were fine, she wears a little playsuit, socks and a fleece sleep sack to bed but her hands are uncovered. DH has terrible circulation so it is probably heredity but is there anything I can do to keep her warmer?

[Heidi]

Emilie - any advice on how you transitioned her out of the bed?? :o

[Emilie]

Heidi - I wish I actually knew! It just sort of happened one night. We got her dressed in bedtime clothes, nursed downstairs around 9:30 pm and then cuddled while she dozed off and on and I took her upstairs about 10:15 when we went to bed. I put her in the bassinet while I got ready and realized that she wasn't awake so I didn't get her up to nurse again and she slept.

Now every night we just get her dressed and changed by 8 or 9, sometimes we nurse to sleep downstairs and put her in the swing until bedtime or nurse her until she falls asleep upstairs and then we just put her in the bassinet. Once in a while she will fuss but I just keep putting the paci in her mouth and rocking her with my hand (I think she is more freaked I am gone than anything) and within 15 minutes she is out for the night.

I wish I had better, concrete advice - like I said, it just sort of happened!

[Amuse Bouche]

Emilie -- DD usually starts out the night in her bassinett (I bring her to bed for the first feeding, and I've started swaddling just to keep her hands warm. I've also heard that sewing shut the armholes of a sleepsack can work.

[TracyDP]

Emilie - any advice on how you transitioned her out of the bed?? :o

We had Ellie sleeping between us in an in-bed co sleeper so when it came time to move her out of the bed we just put the co-sleeper inside the beside-the-bed co sleeper bassinet we have. To her it felt the same, and as long as I was in the same room she didn't seem to notice the difference. Breastfeeding stopped for me at about 2 months (milk just never really came in) so that's when we decided it was time to get her out of our bed and into her own.

[sabrespa]

Zach falls asleep around 8:30 and I just put him in our bed and then I usually go to bed around midnight. He is the first child I've had that will sleep without me in those first couple of months. I figure that accomplishing this much will make the big move to the crib even easier.

[LittleStar]

Hi! McKinley started school last week, and I'm using these few weeks before I go back to work to catch up on things (including this thread!). Here's a blurry Halloween pic of her:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2205/2072101720_08c0abab8c.jpg?v=0.
She's got really munchable cheeks! And she's so easygoing. I had no idea how "difficult" DS was until I compare him to her. Not that he was awful, just fussier. Anyway, McKinley's been sleeping well in her crib for the last month or so, and after skimming over some of the posts in here, I'm going to try to put her down even earlier, like at 9 or so. I've noticed that the later we wait to put her down at night, the harder it is.

She was 12 lbs. 9 oz. at her 2 month appt. and fits comfortably in her 3-6 month clothes.

Those first few weeks were really hard, and I vowed not to have #3 so close in age to #2, but now, well, it's not so bad. Not that I'm ready for #3 just yet :p I just have to say that I have such respect for SAHMs. DS has been going to school while I've been on maternity leave, but he was sick a few weeks ago and stayed home, and I just about died having both kids home with me, even with DH working from home a few of the days.

DS loves his baby sister. He calls her "Ninley". He's also started giving her spontaneous kisses, and likes for her to "sit" next to him and give him high 5's.

[Jess71903]

Little- McKinley is so cute! Love the dimpled cheeks! Gage slept in his crib for like 1 night before we found out about the shunt malfunction, and now he is back in our room. He did fine...it's more for my comfort. I don't think DH was ready for him to move into his room yet either.

Gage got his stitches out yesterday and everything looks pretty good. He has been a pretty good boy lately. He goes to bed usually around 8:30 or 9 and sleeps until 4:30 or 5:30. I am so thankful for that! He is nursing at least every 2 hours during the day, sometimes more often, though! The kid is 3 months old and weighs 16lbs, 12oz :eek:! He is exclusively breastfed, so I guess he is just going to be a big boy! If he was bottle fed, I would think I was overfeeding him or something.

I don't remember if I posted these or not, but here is Gage the day we took him to the hospital for surgery (supposed to be just over night)
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2023/1912108436_5a81893778.jpg?v=0

And then looking at his daddy in the hospital after his 2nd surgery of the stay to place the drain.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2215/1912108412_bbee9f4319.jpg?v=0

[DisneyGirl]

Jess So glad to hear Gage is doing well and is in good spirit. The picture of him looking at your DH is priceless.
16 lbs 12oz thats a big healthy boy you got there..my first son was about that same weight at 3 months..while K is only a BIG 12 lbs..LOL which seems so small compared to my first son.

[jodylovesscotty]

Jess~ Glad to see Gage is doing better:)

LittleStar~ What a cutie! I have a good girl too, makes it so fun!

Zoë had her 2 month ped. visit on Monday. She weighed 10lbs. 9 oz and was 22 1/2 inches long. She got all of her shots, and she screamed bloody murder. I started back to work on Monday so she is now in daycare fulltime. I feel so guilty leaving her there, and then only having a few hours in the evening with her before she goes to bed. She is truely a perfect baby, daycare said so as well (though they are paid to say that). She only cries when she is hungry. Still sleeping through the night. Smiling, cooing, and loving life. Only 3 more weeks and I am off for 2 1/2 for Christmas break. Can't wait to spend all that time with her.

[sabrespa]

Little Star ~ I'm lovin' the dimples!

Jess ~ I love his smile

Since we're sharing. Here's a couple of pics. Zach is 12 weeks today
http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f393/sabre_01/IMG_0592.jpg

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f393/sabre_01/IMG_0589.jpg

[hmbay]

Approximately 10.5 weeks:

http://media5.dropshots.com/photos/113947/20071124/175040.jpg

[Amuse Bouche]

Zach looks so much like you, Sabre!

Here's Madeleine at 9 weeks -- this is from our Sears photo session.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2196/2072322354_00dfd1e78d.jpg?v=0

[jjohm]

what adorable babies!
i'll play:

alex at 9 weeks
http://files.blog-city.com/files/J04/60871/p/t/img_3754.jpg
http://files.blog-city.com/files/J04/60871/p/t/img_3883.jpg

[TracyDP]

such cute babies! and all that hair too, Ellie is still bald for the most part. she weighed in at the dr today at 12 lbs even, 6 days shy of 3m old. funny with babies all shopping the same brands we end up with the same sleepers. Ellie has that same white fuzzy sleeeper w/ the flowers on it from carters. its one of my favorites. one handed typing...so fun. not! heres some pics
and yes, we swiped several of the little ducky blankets from the hospital, they make the best swaddlers. :p

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2161/2074375275_e74fb597e1_m.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2058/2074372577_3b680cd378.jpg

[Jess71903]

Aw! Everybody's babies are so cute and getting so big! I love how interactive Gage is getting...And here it is 7:45 and he's still not up yet after being put down at 9:30 last night. WOO HOO!

sabre- it looks like Gage and Zack got bit by the same stork!

[sabrespa]

hee, Jess, you're right, I went back and looked at Gage and I can see it in the second picture. My DD had the stork bite between her eyes too, but you can't see it anymore.

[DisneyGirl]

Love all the pictures!

[Bucktown]

I love all the pics too! This one was in the link I posted awhile back but I just love it.

http://www.winkflash.com/photo/imagew2.aspx?c=5098174&i=212169154&z=0

[Amuse Bouche]

Tracy -- Madeleine has that Circo safari sleeper!

[jodylovesscotty]

Everyone's babies are just georgous. Here is Zoë at 7 weeks and also her the picture we used on her Christmas cards.

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j131/jurbas/lZoeClaus.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j131/jurbas/IMAGE0002.jpg

Sorry they are so big, I can't get them to go smaller.

[jjohm]

at 11 weeks along, we are finally seeing some type of rough daily schedule.

7am - wake up, nurse, play (sometimes bath)
8:30am - nurse, nap
11:30am - wake up, play
1:00pm - nurse, nap
4:00pm - nurse, play
between 4 and 8, it's eating and one or two shorter naps but nothing regular...
8:30 - nurse, swaddle, sleep.
sometimes, he wakes up around 9 or 10 and has to be put back to sleep.
he'll also wake up sometime between 2am and 4am for a feeding.

the nap in the morning is great because i can get work done (i work from home 20hrs/week) and my toddler is in daycare. then in the afternoon, when DS#1 comes home, they both nap from 1-ish to 3-ish, so i get 4 hrs in on a good day (then make up in the evenings if i need to). still not a lot of time to do a whole lot of housework, but i'm slowly figuring things out.

Alex still spits up a lot but is gaining well, so I guess it really just is a laundry problem for me...
How's everyone else doing these days??

[sabrespa]

jjohm, we're in a similar schedule

7:30 wake and eat
9- sleep
11- eat & play
1- sleep
3- eat and play
6- catnap (15-20 mins)
8:30- bed
He wakes to eat at 2am and 5am

[DisneyGirl]

My Schedule:

Up mostly all night and day, crying/whinning half of that time and if hes not crying he will be soon because his big brother and sister pester him to no end.

Thank god hes my last because if my other two kids played this game K is playing with not sleeping much I would have never had any others..for sure!

[jodylovesscotty]

We don't really have a set schedule during the day, but she just started daycare last week and is getting used to it. But when we are at home we do:

5:30 am - Wake up, eat, get ready for daycare
Daycare until 4:00
4:00 - we play until next eating
5:30 pm- Eat then play a little
7:30- small cat nap
8:30 pm - book or bath
9:00 pm- p.j's, swaddle, eat, bed (sleep through the night)

[Emilie]

Our schedule is pretty standard at this point but the late afternoon/evening varies by mood:

8:30 - wake up, nurse, talk and play
10:30 - down for her nap
1:30-2 - up from her nap, nurse, play
4:30-5 - another nap
6:30-ish - up for the evening, nurse several times over the course of the evening, play, talk with dad when he gets home, etc
8:30 - sleepy time downstairs in her swing
10 - bedtime nurse and into her bassinet

She wakes up most nights between 4 and 5:30 to be changed but goes back down without nursing or just nursing quickly. We are pretty lucky to have a very easy, lovely little girl.

[hmbay]

schedule????

Kidding. But really I'm not sure we have one since I'm not home during the day.

Anyone else have problems getting the kids down and getting them to STAY down. I can get Sabrina down at night no problem but she's often up 5-20 minutes after I put her down. This happens repeatedly. I do think in her case it's stomach related because usually 3 hours later she burps, farts or has a dirty diaper and then she is out for 3-6 hours. I have no idea if there is anything I can do to speed up the process or I'm just having to stick it out. It really sucks when sometimes it's 2 am and I finally get her down and I have to be up at 6:30 am (and either she or my 2 y.o. will wake up at least once between 2 am and 6:30 am guaranteed).

[emschwar]

We don't have a schedule yet. But Daniel wanted to wish everyone a Happy Hanukkah!
http://images.costcophotocenter.com/232323232%7Ffp%3B7%3Dot%3E2326%3D42%3C%3D528%3DXRO QDF%3E2323%3B33587882ot1lsi

[Boskie]

Great pictures, everyone.

Emschwar - where did you find the My First Hanukkah outfit? I have looked everywhere I could think of. The most I ever found were bibs and those were all out of stock. It is too late for Olivia for this year, but it'd be great to know where to find one for DC#2.

Schedule

I'm not 100% sure of her daytime schedule, since she is with my mom until January, but I have a rough idea.

6-6:30 - wake up, eat, play
7:30 - leave for Grandma's, play
9:30 - eat, then nap
11:30 - play
12:30 - eat, play
2:00 - nap
4:00 - eat, picked up by Daddy
6:00 - eat, cat nap (about 1/2 hour)
7:30 - bath, story, eat
8:00 - bed
She'll wake up around 3:30ish to eat, but is back down in 20 or so minutes

Here's a picture of Olivia at about 8 weeks.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v255/Boskie/11-16-2007-7.jpg

[2 Crazy Pugs]

I don't know if we have a set schedule, but the day pretty much goes like this:

7 am- up, eat, play
9-9:30- cat nap for about 20 minutes
10-10:30- eat, play
12:00-1:00- play and then try to get her to sleep

sometimes she will nap in the afternoon, sometimes not. If she does its for 2 hours or more.

She then eats again, we play until Daddy comes home, then he takes her and plays with her, we eat, she eats, bedtime routine starts around 8:00. She goes down between 9:30 and 10:00, and sleeps through the night.

This will all change soon though, as I have to go back to work on Dec. 17 and she will be starting daycare on Jan. 2 (DH is on vacation till then). I am so dreading leaving her, and feel SO GUILTY. I also feel very guilty about the fact that I WANT to go back to work, I want to be in my office with my co-workers, I love my job and I love my co-workers. I will be working from home 2 days a week, so she will only be in the daycare 3 days (Tues, Wed and Thursday)- I had to do that, I felt like if she was there all week, we would never really see her, except at night and on the weekends. At least this way, she will be with me 4 days a week, and with daycare 3 days.

I don't know how to get over this guilt I am feeling though, it keeps me awake at night, and sometimes its so bad, I break down in tears.

[jjohm]

dropping off a holiday picture:
http://x03.xanga.com/1e9c0613d4030161209746/z121350349.jpg

[Taurus]

Awesome pics.

Em, glad to hear I am not the only one without a schedule. We are SO not even close to having a schedule and will probably never be as scheduled as I was when I just had one baby. We are still working on getting more than 3 hours of sleep at a time! Trying to sort out if he's got tummy issues or food sensitivities, but it could be much, much worse. He's not a screamer or anything. I am absolutely getting a kick out of watching his appearance change and how it is/isn't like DS1. And watching DS1 with him is cuter than anything I could have imagined!

[Jess71903]

We are starting to get into a schedule, but I don't always look at the clock to see what time it is. He gets up at about 8:15 in the morning, takes about an hour nap around noon, and goes down for the night at around 9:30, with many cat naps in between...he doesn't do long naps during the day. He has stopped nursing at night. Sometimes I hear him kind of wake up around 3 or 4am, but he just wiggles and finds his thumb and goes back to sleep. I am LOVING the night sleep!

hmbay- On the gassy/ waking up issues...try putting him on his tummy for a little while before bed-maybe across your legs. Sometimes Gage will be fussy and I will lay him down and he immediately farts a lot and then settles down.

Loving all the pics! Keep them coming!

[mobe63]

I am jealous of all these schedules and babies sleeping through the night.

DS will sleep untill 330 then nurse (40 mins) and change, the wakes up again at 630-change nurse, play a little in my bed. Then he goes back to sleep for a hour or so.

Durring the day I let him do what he wants. We try to eat play and catnap!

[sabrespa]

QOTD: Does your baby hate tummy time? Zach hates it with a passion! He will tolerate about 30 seconds before he's screaming so loud that he's turning purple. He does like it better propped up on the boppy pillow but he isn't going to learn to roll over like that. My other two kids loved tummy time, so I don't know what to do with little Zach.

[jodylovesscotty]

QOTD~ Zoë hates tummy time too. I can only get her to do a few minutes with a small pillow or boppy under here. My ped. said to do that and to hold her up over my shoulder. He said she will learn to roll over without it, but tummy time or shoulder is good for developing neck strength.

[jjohm]

DS hates tummy time too, but will tolerate it for a few minutes if he has something interesting to look at (or a mirror). He's holding his head up at 90 degrees though, and he can roll onto his side from his back.

[Jess71903]

Even though Gage sleeps on his tummy, he doesn't love being on his tummy when he is awake. I am persistant and make him stay there for a few minutes every day anyway, and it has gotten a little better with time. He thinks this mirror is pretty cool and the dog helps some, too.
http://trus.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pTRU1-2877258reg.jpg


I thought yall might be interrested in this as a Christmas gift to the grandmothers, or your little girls. Molly's Jewelry Box (http://www.mollysjewelrybox.com/default.aspx) is a website and business that is run by my friend whose son also has spina bifida (she was a real source of support for me before Gage was born). She gave me this one when Gage was born (as pictured on her site).
http://www.mollysjewelrybox.com/images/productimages/MJB20070930/MothersBraceletGage.jpg

They are really well-made and pretty. She started out just making jewelry for her little girl, Molly, and others wanted to buy them, so she sells them now. For Christmas I am getting my mom one with Gage's birthstone, and my grandmother one with all of the birthstones of the grandchildren and her new great-grandson.
http://www.mollysjewelrybox.com/images/productimages/MJB20070930/GrandmotherBraceletGrandma.jpg I really love the double-strand ones, too.
http://www.mollysjewelrybox.com/images/productimages/MJB20070930/DoubleStrandMotherBraceletMollyKaden.jpg
She'll pretty much personalize it however you want, so if you see something similar, but not exact, email her and she will let you know.

[ptcrn]

I've got lots to catch up on! David had his 2 month visit last week and weighed 10 lbs 11 oz, and is 22 1/2 inches long. He is growing so fast! He laughs and squeals a lot now, and is finally growing out of his "I need to nurse every minute of the day" phase. This is a welcome relief so I can finally get something done!

Tummy time- He actually loves this if done in short spurts several times a day. We do it on the countoured changing pad after most diaper changes. He loves diaper changes, so I do it when he is already happy and laughing. He won't tolerate more than a minute or two at a time though.

Schedule- HA!! I am so jealous of those of you who have one! Almost no two days of ours are the same. The last few days I have gotten him to take a nap around 11 am or noon. Yesterday it lasted almost 3 hours, but today only about 30 minutes. He is taking a second nap right now, though. Does anyone else's child need to be in the swing or the car seat to nap? I cannot get David to settle down anywhere else, even if he is swaddled. I keep telling myself that I am not creating bad patterns as long as it doesn't go beyond 3 months (as Harvey Karp says), but I'm a little nervous just the same!

Here are a few recent pics:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2148/2091803715_01cf49b89e.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2004/2092587328_9c8a1e56aa.jpg?v=0

This one we are using for our Christmas cards:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2073/2092619290_6f73ab01a1.jpg?v=0

I love everyone's pictures!

[Emilie]

A new picture my mom took today while we were going through her various clothes - she is right on track, very nearly out of her 0-3 month items and into her 3-6 month. I do love that smile so!

http://ellieduncan.com/images/three25_big.jpg

[emschwar]

Daniel HATES tummy time! I'm so bad about it too. I doubt he gets it once a day. Eh, he'll hold his head up eventually! ;) Actually, he has really good head control when he's upright, but he won't lift his big old noggin when it's tummy time. (He can, I've seen him do it once or twice, but he prefers to lie there and suck his fist or bury his head in the blanket and scream.) Not that I blame him - he's 25 percentile for weight and 80th for head!

[Jess71903]

ptcrn- I am so glad you posted that about tummy time on the changing table! We did that at just about every diaper change yesterday and Gage loved it!

[sabrespa]

QOTD: Are you back to your prepregnancy weight?

I'm not even close! I have about 15lbs to lose, it's all on my belly and my back. Though I do have to fess up to the fact that I not worked out at all since having Zach.

[Bucktown]

QOTD 1~ No schedule here either. DD cat naps all day, usually around30 minutes or so each time. She's never awake for longer than 2 hours though.

QOTD 2~ Hates tummy time. She'll leave her head buried into the blanket/floor and scream. I'm not too worried about it though cause she has really good head control. She demands to stand almost always when being held and I've even busted out the exersaucer Friday so she could test it out. She did well but I only let her stay in there for a few minutes or so at a time. I think she's too young to get it. I believe DS was in it around 4 months though. Here she is all proud of herself:

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd127/Croceil9/IMG_1976.jpg?t=1197260752

QOTD 3~ Yes, below PP weight by 5 lbs but I still look gross. Mine is all in my belly and back too. I've been too pre-occupied to work out at this point. The holiday's always kill me.

Us~ Friday I had another breaking point. DD would only nap in my arms for about 30 minutes each time. I was able to get 1 good nap in when both kids went down together but I have to lay next to them the entire time with them plastered up against me or the wake up crying. My 3 y/o is a horrible sleeper. On Thursday I made sure I had the camera within reach to prove to family/friends how rediculous my kids sleeping habits are. This is what I caught:

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd127/Croceil9/IMG_1965_1.jpg?t=1197260543

By Friday afternoon I was so stressed and overwhelmed and sleep deprived I decided that was it. DD went into her crib that night. Amazingly, she only woke once around 2:30am to eat, went back into the crib and slept till 7! Yesterday she took all of her naps in the crib and they seem to be getting longer. Now she's at about 40-60 minutes each nap each after only 1-2hours of wakefulness. Bedtime was rough last night (we had a sitter for the night so I think it doesn't count) but when we got home at midnight she was back in the crib till 2am, ate then back to sleep till 9:15. I couldn't freaking believe it. Thank God though cause I had a horrible hangover. :) Tonight she's been in bed since 7:30 and she did wake twice but DH went up and popped the paci back in and she's been quiet since. I LOVE MY BED!

[hmbay]

QOTD tummy time--DH give her some daily. I slack about it. Yes she hates it but it needs to be done.

QTOD weight--lord I wish. I have gotten into some of my pre-preg clothes but only about half of them. The boys broke my scale so I have no idea what I weigh--just that it's enough I can't get back into my clothes yet. I also haven't really had time to work out (which I hate doing anyhow) and I have a desk job so that kills me with losing weight as well.

Bucktown--cute picture. Glad to hear she slept good in the crib last night.

[jodylovesscotty]

QOTD~ I lost all my pregnancy weight plus 5 extra pounds however, the belly is still flabby. I was out of my maternity clothes at 2 weeks PP thank goodness. I didn't work out or anything, it just came off. I think from the workout I get with Zoë.

Bucktown~ I feel bad for you! I tell you the best thing we ever did was put Zoë in her crib to sleep. After a few days she went in without crying and now sleeps there all the time and sleeps through the night. She never got the chance to rely on us to sleep. I make everyone who watches her do the same thing as well!

[Emilie]

QOTD - pre-pregnancy weight. I am 17 lbs below pre-pregnancy weight BUT before you throw things at me I only gained 6-8 lbs during the pregnancy because of the gall bladder issue I had and the fact that I got pregnant when I was the heaviest I had ever been. So yes, I am that much below my starting weight but my belly and hips are still completely flabby and mushy and I have a long way to go as far as getting toned up.

[Boskie]

QOTD - Tummy time - I admit I'm not very good about remembering to do this, but when I do, she actually likes it. She has really good head control, thankfully.

QOTD - Pre-pregnancy weight. I lost all my pregnancy weight, by about 3 weeks pp. My tops from before fit fine, it is my pants that don't, so I'm still wearing my maternity pants. My stomach is so squishy! I know that I've got to get back to working out to get rid of it, but by the time the baby goes down at night, all I want to do is sleep myself. I'm already waking up at 5:45 to get ready for work, so I'm not sure where I'll fit working out in. I guess I'll have to get up at 5.

[Bucktown]

Jody~ I'm so for crib sleeping. I personally hate co-sleeping but have (still do) done it with DS and was with DD.


She's been in her crib full time now and doing great. Last night went to bed at 7:30, woke once at 2:30 then up for the day at 7:30. We are now in the process of trying to see if we can get her off the Alimentum RTF & try the 'cheaper' Sensitive RTF. :) I've been mixing the bottles half & half today so we'll see.....

[TracyDP]

qotd: (1 handed typing, bol) i was 165 before, gained to 178 now back to 165. with the intestine surgery i am thrilled i didn't lose too much weight after. i was worried if i'd be able to eat good enough but aside from a few inconvenient bathroom trips a day i seem to be fine. due to my weight loss surgery i was more worrid during pregnancy that i wouldnt be able to gain at all (not good for baby). i look great in clothes but like a 70 yr old woman without! i dream of plastic surgery, losing 185lbs then being pg left my body looking pretty bad...not that im complaining, i dont weigh 355 lbs anymore and have a beautiful baby. :)

schedule? um, not so much during the day, but ok at night. Ellie sleeps from 9-11pm, during which time i do most of my chores or internet catch-up or other projects. we feed, have a story & diaper change hen both of us go to bed at midnight, she sleeps until between 4:30 and 6 am, eats, then back to bed until 8 or 9. works for us, im a night person and hate getting up twice. sometimes i nap on the couch while she sleeps 9-11pm in her playpen, it is just easier to get up from that than from snuggly bed.

tummy time usually for about 15 minutes on the floor or on my tummy, she holds herself up pretty good.

boskie, cute picture! looks familiar:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2414/2074371947_5bc8df05e8_m.jpg

[emschwar]

I'm still about 15 lbs above my pre-pg weight, which is 10 lbs above my pre-pg weight with Noah. I'm joining a gym next month.

I could never co-sleep. I know I'd never be able to sleep with the baby next to me. Daniel's been in his crib since we came home from the hospital (and Noah was too) and he sleeps just great there. Usually he's only up once a night!

Is anyone else having a hell of a time with colds? Daniel's just getting over his 2nd (he needed antibiotics for that one) and now Noah's got another one, so I'm sure Daniel'll get that one too. Seems like the kid is always sick! I guess that's the peril of having a winter baby and an older sibling.

[Amuse Bouche]

Well, I guess I'm in the minority but I love cosleeping and am in no hurry to get DD out of our bed. She still wakes up a couple of times a night to nurse (which is fine with me, since I'm still worried about her weight gain) but she just eats and we're both back to sleep within 5 to 10 minutes.

M hates tummy time, too, but she actually rolled over the other day.

[jjohm]

weight: as of yesterday, i'm down to my PP weight... still have 10 more to lose before i'm at my ideal weight though. getting back into power yoga so hopefully that will help.

tracy: what an amazing story! dunno when you lost all that weight but congrats!

colds: alex has had one cold. DS#1 is always sick from daycare, but thankfully, alex hasn't gotten any more of them.

bucktown: your pic is too funny!
amuse: yay for rolling over!

i am considering moving alex to his own room soon... i have him in the cosleeper now, but when he fusses a bit, i pop the pacifier in his mouth and he usually settles down. then wakes once for a feeding between 3 and 4am and we're right back to sleep. i'm thinking using the noise machine will work, so i'm planning to get this one (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00008439C/ref=s9_asin_image_1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-1&pf_rd_r=1PTAEBE3Q890PBHC0XE2&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=320448601&pf_rd_i=507846).

anyone have recommendations for a white noise machine? if you have one, do you think it helps?

[jodylovesscotty]

jjohm~ I don't use a whitenoise machine with her. However we use a humidifier in her room and that makes a nice noise for her.

QOTD~ Have any of you got AF back yet? I have not had a period yet and I am not even breastfeeding. I did breastfeed for the first month, but I thought for sure she would be back already. I am almost 11 weeks PP.

[sabrespa]

Jody, I got AF right at 11 weeks. With my second pregnancy I pumped for 4 months and it still took 10 weeks (after I finished pumping) for me to get my period. Were you regular before getting pregnant?

[hmbay]

QOTD--AF--no idea. I bled on and off for several weeks after my IUD placement. Could have been partially AF. That was 6 weeks ago so it's possible the bleeding at the end of that period could have been AF. with DS1 and DS2 I was BFing and didn't see AF until around six months but DD sleeps longer stretches and goes longer between feedings than DS did plus I was on BCP with DS1 and DS2 so I'm expecting AF earlier this time.

[Taurus]

We got a white noise machine for DS1's room when he began night waking out of nowhere a few weeks ago (as well as waking up from naps hysterical if he heard the baby crying) and we think it has really helped. DH got it...I think it was the only one on Amazon. The company was called "Online Components" I think.

I lost all my weight within 2 weeks. I am very lucky in that way, except that my stomach skin has not rebounded the way it did with DS2. I don't know if it will get better or if it is just the result of two pregnancies in 3 years.

[Jess71903]

I'm not too worried about it though cause she has really good head control.
I know you are under a lot of stress and this is probably not priority right now, but keep trying. Head control is not the only thing tummy time accomplishes. It helps them bring their hands together at midline, helps develop find motor skills, and gets that arm strength going for pushing up and crawling. Being on their tummy is really important developmentally! I'm probably hypersensitive to it since I'm a therapist, but I thought I would put out the PSA!

That pic of you with your kids is too funny! I hope the sleep thing continues to get better!

Weight- still about 15lbs over pre-preg weight, which was a good 15 or 20lbs over what I really need to be. I have done NO exercising and have been eating like crap, so I'm not surprised, but still disappointed. I just caved and bought a pair of jeans in a size that I couldn't admit was my size before now. I look like crap in the few pieces of clothes I can actually wear. Makes me kind of miss being pregnant.

AF-she may have showed up at 4 weeks, but I didn't start really paying attention until after 9 weeks, which is supposed to be that magic dividing line between PP bleeding and AF. So, I noticed at 12 weeks...and I'm exclusively BFing. I am thinking the initial NICU stay probably did it to me. It's a bummer, because I was really looking forward to her staying away as a bonus to BFing!

Happy Holidays!!
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2218/2102161808_e84383bd82.jpg?v=0

[Bucktown]

AF~ Came at exactly 11 weeks and was unbelievably heavy to a point where I almost called the OB. It just ended today.

Jess~ thanks for the input. I know I should work on it but it's torture. DS was the same way & he was developmentally early with all things physical so I'm really lax with her. I will try harder though! Great family pic you got there!

[DisneyGirl]

AF~ Came at exactly 11 weeks and was unbelievably heavy to a point where I almost called the OB. It just ended today.



When I got AF for the first time I bled so heavy I was sorta getting scared.

[Taurus]

I'm neurotic about tummy time too since DS1 had low tone, but fortunately DH takes care of doing it with DS2. He has shocked us by rolling over tummy to back at around 4 weeks, so I think he will be doing lots of things differently than DS1. He is also a string bean whereas DS1 looked like a linebacker already at this point.

[emschwar]

Random question - is anyone else getting headaches? I'm still getting killer headaches, almost every day. I saw the doc for them today for the 2nd time and I go in for an MRI on friday. He's kind of baffled, so I'll probably be heading to a neurologist soon. I'm just curious if anyone else is getting these. I know several people said they were getting headaches a couple months ago.

[Bucktown]

Em~ Sorry to hear about the headaches. I don't get them oftne but when I do they are brutal. I couldn't imagine having them everyday. Hope they find an answer soon.

[Jess71903]

Em- I am sorry about the headaches! I had one yesterday, actually, but I think it's weather-related. It has been in the 50s for highs and yesterday it was 75 degrees and very muggy. I hope you can figure out what's going on!

[sabrespa]

Em~ I have a headache nearly everyday. But I think it's because I keep falling asleep sitting up on the couch, while holding the baby. I keep waking up with a sore neck and sore shoulders.

[jjohm]

emschwar: i get headaches every so often and i'm willing to be mine are caused by 1. lack of sleep and/or 2. being dehydrated. can't remember if you had an epidural, but i heard that sometimes they cause headaches for a while. on second thought, i doubt that could last more than 2 months...

jess: cute pic! you look great and gage is getting big!

taurus: thanks for your comment. i should think about getting one for DS1's room too then. once we move alex to his own room, it shares a wall with ryan's and i'm pretty sure he'll hear him if he cries.

[TracyDP]

AF: got it 3 weeks ago, not too heavy, basically same as it was before being preg. I got my Mirena IUD put in last week so we'll see how the periods are with that in. Ive never had an IUD before but it seemed like the best option for us right now. my OB said I'd have a lot of spotting for up to 6 weeks, but so far I haven't had any at all. Marital relations resumed last night for the first time since about 3 weeks before the baby, much to the relief of my DH. Poor guy, he's been very patient.

This SAHM thing is brutal. I think it was easier going to work every day. I know it's so much better for the baby/kid to have a parent home but I am just not used to having so little structure to my day and so little adult conversation! We keep busy, and I do have my MIL and 2 friends that watch her once a week each, but it's still frustrating. There is SO much that needs to be done around our house (it's starting to look like something from Clean Sweep) and I get frustrated having to deal with Ellie when I really feel motivated to clean. She is getting better at entertaining herself or sleeping in the playpen in the living room though so hopefully in time I'll be able to get more done. I got spoiled the last 3 months with DH home full time. He went back to work last week and it's been a rough transition for both me and Ellie. She has to spend a lot more time crying than she is used to because there is no one else to hold her.

[LittleStar]

Just dropping off our Christmas card pics...
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2171/2107962962_63e8929e44.jpg?v=0
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2014/2107972418_d04277c419.jpg?v=0

[jodylovesscotty]

LittleStar~ Very cute pictures!

TracyDP~ I am not a SAHM, but wish I were. I thought the same thing too, work would make things easier and the adult conversation would be great, but 3 weeks into I hate it. I would rather be home taking care of my daughter. Guess the grass is always greener on the other side.

AF~ I must have jinxed myself, because the day after I posted AF showed up:mad: I guess 11 weeks is better than some of the other options. I forgot how much I really hated her!

Zoë has her first cold. All we are doing is suctioning the snot and using a humidifier. Anything else you do to help your little one through it? She is coughing up a storm.

[DisneyGirl]

Tracy I am a SAHM and have been for the last 2.5 years and I can totally understand what your saying. There are days when i want to go back to work just so i can get our of house and talk to someone. I will tell you that it does get easier. When your DD gets a bit old she will entertain herself more, you will be able to get out of he house more often ect.. But, trust me I know it can be brutal at times and make sure to take advantage of family and friends who are willing to help you. it will def make things a whole lot easier. I have no help at all ever and I wish I did.

[hmbay]

SAHP--I'm not one but I wish I was. Due to some circumstances DH tried the SAHP routine and became our SAHP. Some days I am SO jealous of him. And he is so jealous of me getting to go to the office everyday. I admit his job is way harder than mine but I'd still rather be home with my kids. Ideally I'd be home with the kids and work around 20 hours to get some "sanity". ;)

[jjohm]

SAHP - i am currently working 20 hrs a week (sometimes at home, sometimes not) and though it seems like it would be the ideal situation, i am ridden with guilt that i am not doing either job well enough...
littlestar: beautiful pics! your photographer is awesome. it is SO difficult (if not impossible for some) to get a picture of a baby and a toddler together where you can see both their faces and they are not crying!

[Jess71903]

Tracy-I am a SAHM, and I know what you mean. I feel like I throw Gage at DH when he gets home because I just need a break. Gage is really a good, easy baby, but I think he gets bored with me sometimes too, so we both need the break. I love going places with Gage, even if we just walk around and look (I get to talk to lots of people because I wear him and people apparently think that's cool), but we live about 30 min. out of town and Gage is a monster in the car. Traveling over the holidays is going to be bad...I think I calculated that we will be on the road at least 21 hours total in 10 days- and that's using pre-baby trip times too... Anyway, I feel you. I am looking forward to Gage getting a little older. I want to be able to do things like take meals to people who are sick, have just had a baby, or have lost a loved one. I want Gage to learn how to serve others. Right now, he doesn't let me cook a full meal when DH isn't home and again, the car issue.

[hmbay]

Gage is a monster in the car.

DS2 hated his carseat and the car until I moved him into a convertable carseat. He just hated the snugride I guess but he was fine with the Evenflo Triumph I moved him to at 4 months. I'm having the same issue with Sabrina so I'm hoping when I move her in a month or so it will fix the problem as well.

Right now, he doesn't let me cook a full meal when DH isn't home
Crockpot! :)

[sabrespa]

All of my kids hated the car until they were about 6 months old. Well hopefully it doesn't last longer than that with Zach.

I agree with hmbay, crockpot!

I've been a SAHM for 4.5 years now. Yikes! I had plans to go back to work this past Fall but then I found out that I was pregnant with Zach. So I'm looking at probably another 2 years at home. Childcare for an infant is very difficult to find around here. There's a 1-2 year wait list. It can be very isolating, especially when you have more than one, it gets harder and harder to get out and do things.

[emschwar]

SAHM - there has been more than one occasion where Josh got home, I handed him Noah and ran to the liquor store!!! (Liquor laws are dumb here and you have to buy wine and beer at the liquor store.) It's way worse with 2 kids too. Our house is trashed, and unless I get dinner in the crock pot in the morning, I have no idea what's for dinner come night time. Plus, with the headaches, even if Noah's "napping" and Daniel's sleeping, I still can't manage to pick up the house. Things are looking pretty bad here! I have a high tolerance for mess though, so I don't care too much :)

My biggest recommendation for new SAHMs is to find a playgroup! It was such a lifesaver for me when Noah was little. I got out of the house, I had adult conversation, and it kept me from staying home all day in my jammies. That and gymboree once a week really helped. I made it my goal to get out of the house once a day, even if it was just a trip to target or to walk around the mall just so I had a change of scenery.

[hmbay]

I agree with hmbay, crockpot!


If anyone is interested there are a few crockpot threads on CC--the first thread got compiled into a huge MS Word document I happen to have somewhere and can PM it to anyone interested.

[Amuse Bouche]

Well, I'm not looking forward to going back to work, but that's probably because I am. Also, DH has been home a lot since he's a student, and my parents are both professors and have flexible schedules, so I do get a decent amount of adult interaction.

I think I got AF at 8 weeks, which is awful since I'm exclusively BFing, but it only lasted 3 days and then came back 2 weeks later for a week with light flow. I guess the jury is still out on what's really going on.

[TracyDP]

Thanks to everyone for your SAHM comments. I just want to make clear that I am SO happy that my DH found a new job that pays well enough for me to consider quitting my job. I'm officially still on "bonding" leave until mid February and will decide at that time whether I will go back part time or quit. If DH's new job is going well, and I'm not insane then I'll stay home full time. If his job is not going well or he is not happy there then I might go back part time. I have a couple of child care options through church here so that would not be a big stumbling block. As of right now it's looking like I'll be quitting come February, things are going well. Mostly it's just the transition that's hard. I'm 36 and have been working for this company for 10 years, working full time and living on my own for 18 years. It's just such a HUGE change in how I live my life.

I don't remember which one of you mentioned that you live 30 minutes from town, but I am in the exact same situation. It's 15 minutes to a larger town with a Fred Meyer (like a super Wal Mart with general merchandise and groceries) and some fast food options, etc. but for anything else it's a 30 minute drive to the city. Luckily, Ellie falls asleep almost immediately once we get moving, or she watches out the moon roof in back of the car. She only gets fussy if she is packing a wet diaper or she gets hungry. I try to go into Clackamas (nearest Mall, Costco, BRU, Target etc.) at least once or twice a week. She likes shopping, lots to look at. My DH isn't quite such a fan though ;).

SAHM question: How do you do finances? Since DH and I moved in together we have had a joint account that he funds for groceries and household stuff. Since he makes almost 3 times what I do, he pays the bills, mortgage etc. and I paid for my cell phone and the car payment. The rest of my income was pretty much mine to do with what I wanted and we both have our own private accounts for our spending money. He's kind of anal about money tracking (not really about spending, just keeping track of what/how much) so now that I'm not getting an income anymore from work we have been trying to decide how to work things. I think we are going to keep it pretty much the same only he will make the cell phone and car payments and I will get an "allowance" direct deposited to my personal account that I don't have to account for to him. He will increase the amount in the joint account to cover Ellie and wants me to use it for her stuff so he can track it. Hopefully it will work out. I told him that the only way this would work is if I had a certain amount of money each week I could spend without answering to him for it. He figured out how much we have left after bills and savings and split it 50/50 between his personal "fun money" and mine so we each have the same amount to play with. Let me tell you it's been great that he was home for so long with me and Ellie so he knows how hard it is to get anything done and how stressfull it can be to take care of her full time. He says he feels I have the harder job between the two of us. It's a big help that he understands and doesn't resent it.

[DisneyGirl]

finances My DH cashes his paycheck gives himself money and then give me some money and the rest go into the checking account. If by chanceI needed more money say for a coffee I just use the debt card.

SAHM I am glad to see that some other SAHM at times think staying home is hard or boring at times.

[Bucktown]

SAHM~ Another SAHM here. With DS 1 I really thought I was going to lose my mind being home all the time. For the first year of his life I think I didn't cook and picked up enough to where I wouldn't be embarrassed if someone stopped by. Then it got alittle easier. DS was super high needs and throw in us building a new house (which we still haven't sold!) and at one point I was ready to leave DH. But, Dr. Phil saved me (not kidding here) and things improved so much that we decided on #2. Up until last Friday I hated being home. DD was panning out to be just as high needs as DS. Then the crib sleeping happened & I'm in heaven right now. I get good sleep at night, in my bed, and although naps aren't long I have just enough time to run around and get things cleaned/picked up & dinner made. Bedtime is 7 for DD, 7:30 for DS. DH have time to ourselves again. Life (right now) is fantastic.

It gets easier in some aspects harder in others. I'll come back later about finances. DD just woke...

[Amuse Bouche]

finances -- we're joint on everything. Since we've been living together since we graduated from college, and both went through periods with no income (DH has none right now since he's in school) we've pooled everything and spend what we want. We're both reasonably frugal, and we ask before spending more than $100 on anything, pretty much, so it works out for us.

[Emilie]

finances -- we're joint on everything. Since we've been living together since we graduated from college, and both went through periods with no income (DH has none right now since he's in school) we've pooled everything and spend what we want. We're both reasonably frugal, and we ask before spending more than $100 on anything, pretty much, so it works out for us.

Ditto on everything down the spending limit. We have been 100% joint since we moved in together a year before we got married. We each have one personal credit card so that we can buy each other gifts and such but our main CC is a joint one.

[Jess71903]

finances- All joint here too. I can't imagine trying to divide it up!

food- hmbay- I would love those recipes! Great idea!

[Jess71903]

I just went back a page and saw your pics Littlestar. They wouldn't load yesterday. I LOVE the 2nd one! SO sweet!

[filmgirl7]

SAHP - Jumping in here to say that I went back to work 12.5 weeks after Spencer was born, and i'm really pretty happy with the way it's working out. I think his daycare is calm and nurturing, and very consistent, so I feel ok about leaving him there. Also, I teach elementary school so on most days I drop him off at 8, pick him up a little after 4, and get to spend some time with him in the evening before he goes to bed. (he's a bit of a night owl.) We also have snow days, long vacations, etc. I remember when I was home with him I felt awful if I wasn't interacting with him every second that he was awake. Now the time we have together is much more special (for me, at least) and I make a point of dropping everything to play with him/feed him after work. I"m thankful that so far the transition hasn't been too bad emotionally. The worst thing really is that it's SO freakin expensive!

[emschwar]

Just wanted to pop in and drop this off:
http://images.costcophotocenter.com/232323232%7Ffp%3B6%3Dot%3E2326%3D42%3C%3D528%3DXRO QDF%3E2323%3B37%3B3%3B%3A33ot1lsi

[hmbay]

Jess--PM me your email address. It's an 81 page word document.

finances--separate. We didn't get married until I was 29 and DH was 31. We're too used to having our own money. I also make probably 80-90% of the income right now since DH is doing the SAHP thing with a pt gig for a bit of spending money. I did "assign" him some bills to cover-he pays the cell phones, house phone, garbage pickup and his car insurance (he has 4 cars). He also tries to pay big ticket things like our taxes and makes sure we have some savings. I cover everything else.

[TracyDP]

Here are some pics we had taken last week. We used the family one for our Christmas cards and added a wallet size of the purple dress photo for certain family/friends.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2249/2119395139_9f90be0c39_m.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2356/2119394331_12df636860.jpg

[jjohm]

emschwar and tracy: beautiful pictures!

[hmbay]

anyone have any advice?

We're having a rough time. DH is a SAHP and DD and him are just NOT clicking. They have a good day here or there but the last two days she's screamed the entire time I've been gone (other than when she sleeps out of exhaustion). Will not take a bottle. Tried some different bottles. She's on zantac for reflux and doesn't seem to be having reflux problems when I'm around--I think it's just a "I want my mommy" complex. DH is about ready to lose it and I need to find a solution. Me working from home FT or cutting down to PT is not an option. Any ideas? Do I just put her in daycare? They won't keep her if she screams all day will they?

[Emilie]

hmbay - no advice but I can commiserate. I am a sahm but also run my own business so I have client meeting and networking meetings in the evening and leave DD with daddy. It seems like every time I do this she screams the whole time I am gone. DH is less than enthusiastic when I tell him I have a meeting in the evening since he is usually in for a rough evening and I come home to an exhausted, stressed out kidlet and an exhausted, stressed out hubby. :( DH says he thinks it is just an "I want mommy" thing too. Good luck and if you find any solution, please let me know!

[Bucktown]

Geeze, I was going to ask about this too. For the past couple weeks DD will scream bloody murder if anyone has her other than me. I thought the mommy thing wasn't suppose to happen till around 6 months? Now that I think about it, DS started his at 4 months. I don'tlike this phase at all. Mommy nevers gets a break....

[2 Crazy Pugs]

When does everyone think they will start trying to give the LO's cereal? My doc says between 4-5 months....

[Kiley]

We started solids with DS1 at 6 months and we'll do the same with DS2.

[DisneyGirl]

My Dr said we can start cereal at 4 months, but I will be waiting until 6 months.

[sabrespa]

My doctor said 4 months also. I'm not sure when I'm going to start. Honestly it just seems like more work, I'm busy enough feeding 2 kids 3 meals and 3 snacks a day.

[hmbay]

food--I didn't try it with either of the boys until 6 months so I'm sure it'll be 6 months with DD too.

working from home today so that keeps the screams to a minimum--however it will just make them all the worse tomorrow then. :(

[Jess71903]

2 Crazy Pugs- We won't be doing anything but breastmilk until 6 months (per the APA's new recs). I also think we will be skipping cereal altogether. From what I have read, it's pretty much just a filler with no nutritional value. If you are FF, I'm not sure if the recs for when to start are the same or not.

[Bucktown]

solids~ 4 months here if she's interested. She already eyes our food.

hmbay~ so sorry to hear about the mommy preference. I think that day facilities have dealt with these issues before so to save you DH's sanity maybe check a few out?

[mb1197]

Wow, it didn't even occur to me that the Sept. 2007 moms group would continue on after giving birth. I just assumed that I would have to look in the infant area for answers to my questions. Imagine my surprise when I finally had a moment to come back to CC and see all the moms from Sept. still here and talking about where we are all at with our little ones??? Anyway, I'm so glad to know you all are still around. I'm definitely going to try and log on more and see how everyone's babies are progressing!

Oh, we started a little cereal this week. DD is 16 weeks and will be 4 months on Dec. 27th. My pediatrician said to give it a shot (just 2 tablespoons twice daily) a couple of weeks before her four month birthday. She said it's just to get her practicing the movement of getting the food from the front to the back of her mouth. She's doing really well with it. DD has also been sleeping through the night since about 11-12 weeks old.

[emschwar]

We'll do solids at 6 months. Not sure if we'll bother with cereal or not. We may go straight to veggies.

[mb1197]

Quick question...for those of you who are bottle feeding, how many bottles are you feeding per day and how many ounces per bottle/total ounces for the day?

[sabrespa]

MB~ Zach is 3 months/15 weeks (I think) and he drink 4ozs every 3 hours. Plus he's up one time in the middle of the night to eat. I think maybe 8 bottles? I've never counted, but I know I have 5 bottles and I have to wash them twice a day and I always wash when he's down to one clean bottle.:rolleyes: I'm a dork.

[texasbride]

I'm new to this thread. Sophia was born September 9. As far as how much/often we're feeding her...we give her 4/6 oz. every 3-3 1/2 hours, depending on nap. She is sleeping through the night (9 pm-8/9 am) so we've upped all but one feeding to 6 oz. I read somewhere 2-2.5 oz/day per lb. of weight. She's a little over 13 lbs., so should be eating somewhere between 26-32 oz. a day. Right now she's eating 28 oz. Up until about a week ago, she was eating 26 oz., but she started getting fussy and doing her hungry cry after her 6:00 feeding (4 oz.), so we upped it to 6 oz. We'll be starting cereal after her four month checkup so we'll readjust then.

[DisneyGirl]

my dr told me that they should eat 1 oz for every 2 lbs. Unless I missunderstood him.

[sabrespa]

Yeah the rule of thumb with Formula is 1.5-2oz per pound. So if he weighs 10lb then he should have a max of 20oz. Now I never really followed that. I've always fed on demand, if he wants to eat and it's only been 2 hours then I let him eat. I know some doctors insist on trying to put a certain amount of time in between feedings but I'm a rebel and do what I want.:p

[mb1197]

I'd say we're pretty much on track then. I think she's taking about 4-4.5 oz 6 times daily. She was a preemie so she's still catching up weight-wise so I think she's getting enough.

[DisneyGirl]

Yeah the rule of thumb with Formula is 1.5-2oz per pound. So if he weighs 10lb then he should have a max of 20oz. Now I never really followed that. I've always fed on demand, if he wants to eat and it's only been 2 hours then I let him eat. I know some doctors insist on trying to put a certain amount of time in between feedings but I'm a rebel and do what I want.:p

I pretty much have always fed on demand as well. We can be rebels together..LOL :p

[Bucktown]

Wow, my kid is a chunker then. She eats every 4 hours 7.5-8ozs per feeding. So 4 big bottles during the day then 1 7oz when she wakes up in the middle of the night. She goes to bed at 7pm, wakes between 1-2am, then down till 7-7:30am. No more on demand for us. Unless she completely loses it before the 4 hours I deal with alittle fussiness to keep her on schedule.

[hmbay]

Bucktown--so far the advice I've gotten (none of which has worked BTW) is Happiest Baby on the Block DVD, A sling (well this MIGHT work but we don't have one and DH already refuses to wear one anyhow), wearing something that smells like me, just letting her CIO, making daddy take care of her while I'm there and refusing to take her no matter how much she screams (this one MIGHT work but by the time I get home she's screamed so much no way in h*ll is DH going to keep taking care of her and listening to the screams.)

[2 Crazy Pugs]

We pretty much feed on demand also- she eats every 3 hours or so, sometimes longer, and gets 4-5 ozs at a time. In the morning, she wants more, so its usually 6 ozs. and we give her 6 ozs at night also. She sleeps through the night, 9:30 till 7 am or so.

[DisneyGirl]

Merry Christmas to me!!!! K finally sleeps though the night..WOOT WOOT!

[Bucktown]

hmbay~ ya know, on weekends when DH is home & I seriously need a break, I force DD on DH. She was screaming with him too but I refuse to be the only one she'll go to. It took a few weekends but she's now ok with him, not totally cry free, but much better. I had my aunties over today & if they so much as looked at DD she screamed. Not fun.

Disney~ Congrats to you on the sleep! It is truly wonderful when night sleep falls into place! We're still hit or miss on naps but I've been noticing a few days this week at least one nap is 60+ minutes. Normally I only get 30-40 minute cat naps throughout the day.

[texasbride]

I should have posted this information in my last post...oops!

texasbride
Me: Heidi
DH: Michael
Married: 6/1/02
Any other children: golden retriever, Bailey ~ 5 years old
Its a : girl!
ADD: We adopted our daughter, Sophia Renee. We were officially approved for adoption on August 2, 2007, but our caseworker went on vacation right after that, so we didn't get her our profile (kind of like a scrapbook of our lives) until August 15. On September 12, our caseworker called and said that a birthmother had given birth to a baby girl on Sept. 9 and asked if we wanted our profile shown. Of course we did! A week and a half later we found out that she had picked us and we began a mad rush to get the nursery ready. She had to stay in transitional care for a month, but on October 15 she came home with us. We feel so blessed ~ the average wait for adoption through this agency is between 4-14 months and we were chosen the first time our profile was shown (a month after being approved!). I truly believe that she was meant to be our daughter.
N/B stats: 7 lbs. 1 oz. and 19.5 inches long
1 Month: 10 lbs, 22 inches long (that was actually at 7 wks when we took her to the doctor for the first time)

[Bucktown]

Texasbride~ Welcome and congratulations on your DD! Great story!!

[texasbride]

Here are some pictures of Sophia.

This is the first picture we received of her:

http://shim1.shutterfly.com/procgserv/47b7d705b3127cce985489b3639000000037108AasWbdw5ZNq

This is a picture of us at the placement ceremony on October 15:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7ce03b3127ccebe2765179bc900000036108AasWbdw5ZNq

Here she is at two months:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7cf24b3127ccebf13eb0bdcc900000036108AasWbdw5ZNq

And here she is at 3 months:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7cc24b3127cceb106b386092a00000046108AasWbdw5ZNq

Bucktown ~ Thank you! She has brought so much joy into our lives.

[sabrespa]

Texasbride, she's beautiful! That's a great story!

[Suzlywoozly]

Aw Texas that is awesome! You brought tears to my eyes with those pictures. Congratulations!

[DisneyGirl]

Texas CONGRATS how swesome that you were picked right away. She was definitely ment to be your Daughter. Enjoy her and welcome to our wonderful group!

[Bucktown]

Texas~ She is a beautiful little girl!

ETA: Ok, this may sound crazy especially because I can only see side shots of your DH but Sophia looks like your husband. Has anyone made that comment to you IRL?

[texasbride]

ETA: Ok, this may sound crazy especially because I can only see side shots of your DH but Sophia looks like your husband. Has anyone made that comment to you IRL?

Yes, actually several people have made that comment. She actually looks a lot like his side of the family, dimple and all:)

[TracyDP]

Ellie takes about 6 bottles in 24 hours, also know this because I have 8 bottles and usually have 2 left when I wash them at night. She is kind of random in how much she eats. I would say the average is 4 oz since sometimes she only eats 3 and sometimes she eats 6. I read a couple of different places that you shouldn't force them to eat more than they want when you feed them formula so I just stop when she pushes it out with her tongue. I burp her, then try again in about 1/2 hour and she will often finish another 3 oz or so. Breast fed babies just eat until they are done so I figure with formula it should be the same. luckily she doesn't mind cold formula so I can make some ahead of time and feed her as much as she wants without having to waste it or heat it up.

congrats texasbride! Cute baby!

[jodylovesscotty]

texasbride~ I agree with everyone else, what a wonderful story! And your DD is adorable!

Formula Feeding~ We feed Zoë 5 1/2 ounces every 4 hourse. I am so glad that she is going at longer stretches now. Before it seemed like all we were doing is feeding her.

[hmbay]

texasbride--beautiful little girl and I'm so happy your adoption process went quicker than average. Welcome!

[Bucktown]

So now it looks like we're in the beginnings of a new major adjustment which I suppose I created myself but at the time there was no other way.

I have a swaddle monster! She couldn't/can't sleep without being swaddled but now she is busting out of it every night and waking up crying because of it. :confused: I tried to get her to sleep without it at naps but she just doesn't get it and gets frustrated or she can fall asleep w/out it but wakes 10 minutes later. Man. I know I have to just bite the bullet and get rid of it all together but I'm not comfortable with letting her CIO just yet (4 months is my earliest to start that). It's only been 2 weeks since she's been sleeping great in her crib and I've already gotten use to waking only once a night to feed her. Maybe I'll start with one arm out then work to two. Then just the body. I don't remember this with DS. :rolleyes:

Anyone else's LO have a love/hate relationship with the swaddle?

[jjohm]

texasbride: welcome! sophia is adorable!

swaddlemonster: yup, we have one too...alex has a hard time falling asleep unless he's swaddled, or he keeps poking himself in the eyes. i don't have any good suggestions....my ideas are to get a bigger blanket or maybe pin the blanket closed with a diaper pin? good luck!

[hmbay]

swaddling--nope don't swaddle here any longer but I had a couple of the Kiddopotamus SwaddleMe's which worked great and they do make a 15-22 pound size it looks like:

http://www.kiddopotamus.com/p_swdl_123.php

[Bucktown]

Wow! That's the coolest thing. I can't believe I never heard of them. We have a miracle blanket but I stopped using it when DS busted out of it and it was wrapped around his neck. Don't trust it at all.

[hmbay]

Bucktown--I haven't tried all of them. I had a flannel and a fleece one and preferred the fleece because it had a tiny bit of stretch so I felt I could get the swaddle tighter and have it still be comfortable. I think they're around $10 at BRU or Target or wherever (not positive because my mom picked them up for me).

[Bucktown]

Hmbay~Totally excited about this. I called my BRU & they have them in stock so I'm waiting for DH to get home so I can go pick one up. hmmmm. Not sure which to get. DD is always hot & sweaty when I unwrap her completely. If I go with fleece I suppose I could dress her in a lightweight shortsleeve onesie?

[hmbay]

Hmbay~Totally excited about this. I called my BRU & they have them in stock so I'm waiting for DH to get home so I can go pick one up. hmmmm. Not sure which to get. DD is always hot & sweaty when I unwrap her completely. If I go with fleece I suppose I could dress her in a lightweight shortsleeve onesie?

maybe try the regular cotton ones? I'd think they'd have stretch. my mom just picked up the "warmer" options of fleece and flannel since it was fall here and winters are cold in MN. I just know the flannel didn't seem to stretch much and I used the fleece more than the flannel when I was using them. And when I did use the fleece I used a lighter sleeper and a heavier sleeper with the flannel since it was less warm.

[Bucktown]

I got the swaddle me blanket last night. I bought the small & large to see which one was a better fit. The small was way too small (couldn't get the right flap accross her bod to velcro it together :)), so I went with the large. She was already asleep by the time I got home so I waited till she woke for her middle of the night feeding. Got her in there and thought, she'll never get free of this! Woke at 7:15 to hear her talking and lo & behold her arms were free! I couldn't believe it. She's napping now in it so we'll see if she gets out again. My little houdini!

ETA~ Ok, I don't know what the hell is wrong with me but I've got that serious baby bug again. Am I nuts or does anyone else have it too?

[bluejeanbaby]

Hi ladies! I actually had a few minutes and wanted to pop in and check on everyone. Things have been pretty crazy here. Brayden's doing well, but Tyler's been pretty sick lately. He's a couple pretty bad cases of pnemonia back to back and was also diagnosed with asthma. He's been coughing so hard he was throwing up and he actually burst some blood vessels in his eyes! It's been really pitiful. We've been on a pretty rigorous medication schedule and it seems to be working. He's been actually up playing most of today which has been just wonderful! Hopefully we will just continue to get better and the worst is over with it all.

Brayden's doing great, smiling and laughing. I have had some major issues with him sleeping... or lack their of. He was sleeping really well... up to about 6 hours at a time, but lately he's been getting up every.two.hours.every.night and it was getting really hard to deal with, especially with a sick brother on top of it. I finally figured him out and got him on a better eating schedule so he's eating longer every 4-5 hours instead of snacking ALL day! It had been a life saver and now he's just up once a night. We are still working on getting him to sleep on his own but that's a whole other battle. I think we'll work on that after Christmas. No point in totally rocking his world right before we're planning on traveling.

I'm glad to see all the babies doing so well. I can't believe how big they are getting! We also used the swaddle me for the first few months and it was a miracle in keeping him asleep for a little longer. Now he's gotten used to sucking on his fingers so if I try to put him in it he gets really frustrated. :rolleyes:

texasbride-congratulations and welcome! Your little one is beautiful! We are seriously considering adopting and love hearing such good stories!

bucktown-you are so not the only one! In the last week three of my friends had babies and I have had the baby bug BAD! It's crazy... even more so than with my first! We're pretty sure we want three kids, but don't know if we want to have another or adopt, I'm constantly torn and I'm sure it will be a few years, but I definitely have the bug now!

[DisneyGirl]

ETA~ Ok, I don't know what the hell is wrong with me but I've got that serious baby bug again. Am I nuts or does anyone else have it too?

Nope, no baby bug for me. I think 3 is all I can take plus I only have a 4 bedroom house so having another is out.

[jjohm]

bucktown - your nuts!! :p

[Taurus]

bluejean: sounds like you have a lot going on, and I sure hope Tyler feels better soon, but do you mind sharing how you got B on a better schedule?
DS2 still only sleeps 2-3 hours at a time (and unlike Brayden he has NEVER done a long stretch). he just seems too old to be doing that, but I didn't nurse DS1 for longer than a few days, so I am clueless. i feel like I've been nursing "on demand" like I should be, but it sometimes ends up feeling like he's "snacking" as well, and i wonder how that is affecting his night pattern. i am desperate for him to sleep longer. we have had to have DH start offering one bottle of formula during one of the night wakings because i was seriously losing my mind, and i am too physically and emotionally drained to pump. we had been going down this path of reflux and meds and all this stuff, but when i have a clear head and am not so freakin' tired, then i realize that, really, his only "symptom" now is that he won't sleep for very long.

any advice? is anyone else offering formula only at night?

ETA: in case this post doesn't make it obvious, i DO NOT have the baby bug...i actually have cried a few times out of worry that i'll never be able to have the third child that i always wanted becasue these past three months have been so shockingly exhausting!!!!! i realize now that DS1 was truly an easy baby.

[Bucktown]

:D Yeah, that's what I thought.


Santa is stopping at our house tonight before we leave for Salt Lake City tomorrow afternoon. I'm all packed for the 2 kids and me. DH is on his own. We'll be visiting my parents and my brother/SIL and niece (the baby who was born 5 weeks before DD & was touch and go for awhile). DH will be leaving a week before me and I'm flying home alone with both kids. Now that I think I'm nuts for attempting. :p But, DS is a frequent flyer at 15 RT flights so far so I know he'll be good. DD is pretty mellow so all should go well. Fingers crossed.

This is the same trip as last year when I found out I was PG. Jan 6th to be exact. I've starting stalking the FP boards. It's only a matter of days before the new Sept '08 PG thread will begin. That makes me sad. Seems so long ago that we got our BFP's.

Merry Christmas to those that celebrate and Happy New Year to the rest!

[sabrespa]

Taurus~ With DS#1 I exclusively pumped but I had to supplement with formula because he was such a big eater. I couldn't pump enough. I always saved the formula for his night time feedings. I know that it takes longer to digest than breastmilk, therefore, I was hoping that it would stay with him longer. My only fear would be that it could affect your supply. I still pumped while feeding him the formula, so I was still stimulating BM production. But pumping and breastfeeding are two different things.


Since we're talking about sleeping through the night, Zach has done it 3 times in the past week. I hope that this soon becomes a habit!

[DisneyGirl]

Taurus AHHH, I feel your pain on being so tired you can just fall to the ground. Up until a few days ago k was only sleeping ..OH, maybe 3 hrs at night. Then when he would finally decide to go to bed at 6 AM it was only a matter of seconds until my other 2 woke. I was at the brink of lossing my mind then all of a sudden oneday he slept for 6 hrs straight..Merry christmas to me!!! I really hope it gets better for you.

[ptcrn]

Taurus, I hear you on the sleeping thing! I'm not offering formula at night, but maybe that's just because I don't have another kiddo I have to get up to take care of in the morning! The sleep deprivation is okay as long as I don't have anywhere I need to be. :)

I have one who doesn't sleep more than 2-3 hours at a time too. He also doesn't go to sleep without being rocked, or swaddled, or ridden in the car. I have read a bunch of Dr Sears' books and have determined that he is just a high needs baby when it comes to sleep. Out of desperation we just ordered the Amby baby motion bed (only because my in laws are making it David's Christmas present, cause it's expensive!) It is supposed to rock/bounce them gently back to sleep when they wake up/startle/etc. One of the things they market it for is for reflux babies because it keeps them semi-upright. I hope it works!

We have been putting him down at night in his car seat, where he sleeps for 1-3 hours; then co-sleeping after he wakes the first time. And I don't mind co-sleeping, but I feel like he snacks all night that way, like he has an all-night buffet! :D I would just like to get, like 5 hours in a row!

ETA~ Ok, I don't know what the hell is wrong with me but I've got that serious baby bug again. Am I nuts or does anyone else have it too?

Buck-Yeah, you're nuts! :)

It is great for all of you who have babies sleeping through the night!

Welcome texasbride! What a gorgeous baby, and a wonderful story! She is a great Christmas gift!

[Taurus]

ptcrn, glad to hear you are in a similar situation. it's hard to lose sight of what's "normal" when I had a formula fed baby first, and when--if I didn't have DS1 to look after--than DS2's needs might not seem so tiring. i keep having to step back and see if this is a baby problem or a mommy problem, you know? i joked to DH about getting the Amby bed, but I think at this point I can keep hanging in there. somehow I wake up with new energy once I get going in the AM.

yesterday around 9 am, DS2 napped for his typical 30 mins max. then I nursed him a bit (it had only been about 2 hrs since the last feeing) and he fell asleep and napped for over two hours. but I worry that I should not be feeding him at any and all times during the day because then that's what's happening at night, too. i just don't know....i am going to start writing eveything down to look for patterns. it is so frustrating to be almost 13 weeks into this and still feel like I haven't figured him out at all, and that every day and night is all over the place. i try to tell myself we have been in the "fourth trimester" still, but it is getting insane not knowing when or how to feed him or help him sleep. at this stage with DS2, we were going all over town, sleeping long stretches, i was studying for my licensure exams, etc.

thankfully, when he's not fidgeting, hungry, overtired or eating, he's smiling. :)

[hmbay]

Bucktown--sorry the SwaddleMe didn't work as well as you hoped. :(

Taurus--I EP'd with DS1 because he was a preemie and they bottle fed him in the hospital and he refused to nurse after that. It was EXHAUSTING. I only made it 7 months. I did manage to produce enough to not have to suppliment but I was also told that was EXTEMELY rare to be able to EP and not have to suppliment.

STTN--well from the beginning Sabrina usually sleeps 4-6 hours at a time. Never less than 3. However it takes 2-4 hours to get her down to at night. She wakes up the second i put her down multiple times. I think it's related to her reflux waking her up the minute I put her down (yes she sleeps on an incline but I think it's jostling her moving her from me to the crib that causes the gas to wake her up).

baby bug--nope. Always said "2, maybe 3" and I had 3 so I'm done unless there is an oops. No way no how voluntarily am I getting pg again. ;)

[Taurus]

I might have typed something confusing...I'm not pumping at all actually, just nursing. We are trying to give one bottle/night so I can sleep through a feeding (which I know isn't good for my supply) and the reason we are giving formula then is since I've had no energy to pump. Sorry for the confusion! I really appreciate all the sympathy and tips though!!!!!

[2 Crazy Pugs]

TexasBride- what a great story, she is beautiful! I have a Sophia too, she was born Sept. 7!

Bucktown- Yes, I have the baby bug again. But we have already decided that we are going to start trying this summer, we want the kids close together and because of my age (almost 37) we don't know how long it might take (although the doctor told me it would take a year and it only took 2 months for the first).

Anyone have any advice as to how to help a baby with a cold? Sophia has been stuff and coughing and is just miserable. Still eating though, and sleeping okay, but she woke up last night all stuffed up, I had to suction out her nose, but I don't know what to do about the chest congestion.

[Suzlywoozly]

Anyone have any advice as to how to help a baby with a cold? Sophia has been stuff and coughing and is just miserable. Still eating though, and sleeping okay, but she woke up last night all stuffed up, I had to suction out her nose, but I don't know what to do about the chest congestion.

I am not sure about to do about chest congestion besides trying a humidifier. Also have you tried saline drops in her nose? Andrew had a bad cold last month and the saline drops with the suction worked wonders. Hope Sophia feels better soon.

I cannot believe Andrew turned 4 months yesterday. Where the heck has the time gone? I am still dealing with bouts of PPD. I have days when I think it is gone and then there are days when I feel like I am about to hit rock bottom. I am the worst mother in the world because Andrew is still sleeping in his swing at night.:eek: I turn it on to help him go to sleep and then turn it off as soon as he falls asleep. He absolutely refuses to sleep in his crib at anytime. I try getting him into a deep sleep after a bottle and then laying him in there but he wakes up right away. Then I put him in the swing and he is out cold. One good about the swing is that he is sleeping through the night.

Hope everyone has a great Christmas! I am looking forward to Andrew's first!

[hmbay]

I am the worst mother in the world because Andrew is still sleeping in his swing at night.:eek: I turn it on to help him go to sleep and then turn it off as soon as he falls asleep. He absolutely refuses to sleep in his crib at anytime. I try getting him into a deep sleep after a bottle and then laying him in there but he wakes up right away. Then I put him in the swing and he is out cold. One good about the swing is that he is sleeping through the night.

No you're not. Sabrina sleeps probably 50% of the time in her swing at night. Because of her reflux she has a tendency to wake up a lot if on her back so my rule is if she's not down by midnight into her swing she goes. She will actually put herself to sleep in the swing and sleep a minimum of 4 hours--sometimes 6-7 hours in her swing. I've decided MY sleep is more important than her sleeping in her crib every night. I try to get her down in her crib but admit defeat at midnight if she isn't sleeping there.

[hmbay]

I'm taking Sabrina in today to have her put on Prevacid. The dr orginally said she thought she'd do better on it but we had to try Zantac first. Zantac is working but not as well as I'd like. Hopefully the Prevacid will solve some of our never go to sleep at night because my tummy is gurgling and scream at daddy all day because my tummy hurts problems.

[texasbride]

Anyone have any advice as to how to help a baby with a cold? Sophia has been stuff and coughing and is just miserable. Still eating though, and sleeping okay, but she woke up last night all stuffed up, I had to suction out her nose, but I don't know what to do about the chest congestion.


One thing you can do to help with congestion is to prop up her mattress a little bit. You can put a phone book or pillow UNDER the mattress. Sleeping on somewhat of an incline can help with the congestion. You can also take her in the bathroom and close the door and run the shower with curtain closed on super hot. The steam helps to clear up congestion. Hope this helps!

[DisneyGirl]

Hope everyone has a great Christmas and everyone enjoyed their DC.

K received the Fisher Price Jumperoo and I was wondering when I could use it? I didn't have one for my other kids.

Before K was born I had to go out and rebuy many things..including a swing and bouncer and I can not begin to tell you what a waist they were. he will NOT sit in either of them and of course dope me spend good money on a swing he most likely will never ever sit in.

[hmbay]

K received the Fisher Price Jumperoo and I was wondering when I could use it? I didn't have one for my other kids.


I put Sabrina in hers already. I put it on the lowest setting (the one below 1 which really isn't a setting). She can only touch if she tries and I don't leave her in it for more then probably 5 minutes at a time but she loves the toys on it and bats at them and laughs at it. I figure once she can touch like she should I'll leave her in it longer.

[texasbride]

I have a Jumperoo as well and was thinking we had to wait until Sophia could sit on her own, but I just went to the website and it says:

Developmental Guidelines:
Use the Fisher-Price® Rainforest™ Jumperoo™ only for a child who is able to hold head up unassisted and who is not able to climb out or walk.

[hmbay]

I took Sabrina in yesterday and we're going to try Prevacid and see if it helps her fussiness any. They also took her weight to get the appropriate dosage size and she is now 14 pounds 10 oz at 3 1/2 months. The ped said she was 75th % for weight. None of my kids have ever made it past 50th for weight so I'm a bit surprised (heck my first didn't get above 10% for over a year).

[jjohm]

hmbay: good luck with the prevacid! hope she feels better soon.

we don't have a jumperoo but we have an exersaucer which i took out last week. alex loves it (as does my 2yr old). alex used to sit in the bumbo o